Project:

Using DNA Barcoding to Identify Lichen's Diversity in Caumsett State Park, NY in order to Identify the Correlation of Lichens' G

Students:

Hannah Stark, Tanishka Dhariwal

School:

Cold Spring Harbor High School, Suffolk

Mentors:

Jaak Raudsepp

Abstract:

For our project we are detecting whether the growth surface of lichens has a correlation to their sensitivity to air pollution. Specifically, we focused on lichen that can be found in Caumsett Park on Long Island, New York. Our hypothesis is that yes, the growth surface of lichens correlates to their sensitivity to air pollution. Lichens are known to respond negatively to an increase in air pollution making them a good indicator for a change in air quality over time. This sensitivity exists because lichens receive their water and nutrients from the air. Nitrogen pollution, specifically, harms the water intake of lichens and inhibits growth. Lichens also grow on various surfaces such as bark, wood, mosses, rock, soil, peat, glass, metal, plastic, and even cloth. The process of barcoding our samples includes the primer rbcL in a PCR. Next, gel electrophoresis prepares our samples for sequencing through DNA Subway. Then we will utilize the DNA subway to identify the species’.

Poster:

Team samples: